Ladder-round.



UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

LADDER-ROUND.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Nov. 13, 1906.

Application filed March '7, 1906. Serial No. 304,691.

To all whom it may concern:

BeitknownthatLSELIPHEJOSEPHLAMORA, a citizen of the United States, and aresident of Danville, in the county of Caledonia and State of Vermont,have invented a new and Improved Ladder-Round, of which the following isa full, clear, and exact description. g This invention is an improvementin ladder-rounds, and has for an object, among others, to provide animproved ladder-round capable of being quickly attached and detached toor from wire or hemp ropes, bars, chains, or the like whereby a laddermay be built up in a short time and disassembled when desired to pack itin small compass. This construction is especially desirable as alife-saving means for the upper floors of buildings when it is necessaryto construct at short notice a ladder for reaching the ground, as incase of fire.

Reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings, forming a part ofthis specifica tion, in which similar characters of reference indicatecorresponding parts in all the figures. Figure 1. is a side elevation ofthe round embodying my invention attached to a twisted wire, one strandof the wire passing at each side of the rounds jaw. Fig. 2 is alongitudinal section of the same, parts being in side elevation. Fig. 3is a section on the line 3 3 of Fig. 1. Fig. 4 is a section on the line4 4 of Fig. 2; and Fig. 5 is a sectional view, on an enlarged scale, ofthe closure-' plate covering a chamber in the center of the round.

The numeral 1 indicates the body portion of the ladder-round, having arectangular chamber 2 at its center, from which lead passages 3 8,extending through the ends of the round, said passages being eccentricto the body portion 1 and out of alinement with each other. The passages3 3 are also of peculiar crosssection, being round adjacent to thechamber 2 and gradually taking an enlarged U shape, as best seen in Fig.4. The passages 3 3 contain rods 4 4, slidably mounted therein andconforming in shape thereto, which construction affords bearings for therods and at the same time prevents any rotation of the rods relativelyto the roundbody. The rods 4 4 have at their extreme inner ends racks 55, projecting into the chamber 2 and at their extreme outer endsenlarged heads 6 6, having serrated clamping-jaws 7 on their inner facescooperating with corresponding jaws at the ends of the body 1, betweenwhich jaws the wire is clamped when the rods are drawn toward each otherby the racks. It is of importance that the rods 4 4 be mountedeccentrically to the body 1, as shown in Fig. 2, for the reason that itallows space for a pinion between the racks without weakening the racksby making them thinner.

For operating the racks a pinion 8, mounted on a shaft 9 and journaledin one side of the chamber 2, intermeshes, as shown in Fig. 2, with bothracks. Attached to the outer end of the shaft 9 is a button 10, havingwings engaging ratchet depressions 11 at the outside of a closure-plate12. The plate 12 is constructed, as best shown in Figs. 3 and 5, with acentral recess 13 and a contracted recess 13 forming a bearing for theouter end of the shaft 9, and a raised portion 14, fitting in thechamber 2 for positioning the plate and assisting screws 15 for holdingit rigidly to the body 1. Between the pinion 8 and the bottom of therecess 13 is a spring 16, carried on the shaft 9, which acts to forcethe button 10 into the ratchet depressions 11, thereby securely lockingthe racks 5 and pinion 8 in fixed relation.

The operation of the device is as follows: To clamp a rope between theserrated aws 7, the button 1 0 is pulled outwardly from engagement withthe ratchet-recesses and turned to the right, which acts to separate thejaws carried on the heads 6 from those of the body 1. The strands of therope can then be separated and slipped over the heads 6 between thejaws, after which the button 10 is turned to the left, drawing the rods4 together and jamming the rope between the serrations. The se arationof the jaws cannot thereafter take p ace until the button 10 isdisengaged from the ratchet-recesses 11 and the pinion 8 is rotated. Asshown, the button 10 and closure-plate 12 are arranged to come at oneside of the round, where they are less likely to interfere with the feetor hands of the climber.

While the construction herein described and illustrated in theaccompanying drawings shows one form of my device, it is obvious thatvarious changes in the form, proportions, size, and minor details of thestructure may be made without departing from the spirit or sacrificingany of the advantages of the invention.

Having thus described my invention, I claim as new and desire to secureby Letters Patent 1. In a ladder-round, the combination of a bodyportion having a chamber at its center, passages leading from thechamber to the. ends of the body portion, rods slidable in the passagesand carrying racks at their inner ends projecting into the chamber, jawsat the outer ends of the rods, cooperating with jaws on the bodyportion, a pinion engaging the racks and carried on a shaft journaled atone. side in the chamber and at its opposite side in a closure-plate, abutton fixed to the outer end of the shaft, adapted to operate theinion, and a ratchet-face on the closure-pate for locking the button andpinion in fixed position.

2. In a ladder-round, a body portion, rods slidably mounted therein,racks at the inner ends of the rods, a pinion engaging the racks,clamping means between the outer ends of the rods and body portion, andmeans for operating the pinion.

3. In a ladder-round, a body portion, rods slidably mounted therein, awsbetween the outer ends of the rods and body portion, and, means fordrawing the rods inwardly to clamp a rope between the jaws.

4. In a ladder-round, a body portion, rods slidably mounted therein,having clamping means at their outer ends, said rods being eccentric tothe body portion, and means for engaging the ends of the rods anddrawing them toward each other.

5. In a ladder-round, a body portion, rods slidably mounted therein,means to prevent the rotation of the rods relatively to the bodyportion, jaws carried at the outer ends of the rods and body portion,and means for forcing the jaws together.

6. In a ladder-round, a body portion, rods having jaws cooperating withjaws at the ends of the body portion, means carried at the inner endsofthe rods for operating the,

jaws, and means for. locking thejaws in fixed relation.

7. In a ladder-round, a body portion provided with a chamber at itscenter, rods slidably mounted in the body portion and hav- 1ng awscooperating with aws on the body portion, racks extending from the rodsinto the chamber, a pinion engaging the racks, a closure-plate at oneside of the chamber, ratchet depressions in the closure-plate, a buttonfor operating the pinion, and a spring between the pinion andclosure-plate for forcing the button into the depressions.

8. In a ladder-round, a body portion, rods slidably mounted therein,clamping means at the outer ends of the rods, cooperating with the endsof the body portion, said rods being mounted eccentrically to the bodyportion, racks at the inner ends of the rods, and a pinion for operatingthe racks.

9. In a ladder-round, a body portion, rods slidably mounted therein,clamping means at the outer ends of the rods, cooperating with the endsof the body portion, said rods being mounted eccentrically to the bodyportion, racks at the inner endsof the rods, a pinion for operating theracks, and means for locking the pinion and racks in fixed relation.

10. A ladder-round having clamping-jaws at its ends, a raclr-and-pinionmechanismfor operating the jaws, and means for locking the jaws in fixedrelation.

11. A ladder-round having clamping-jaws at its ends, means for operatingthe jaws, a closure-plate on the round, and. a button engaging ratchetdepressions in the closureplate for locking the jaws in fixed relation.

- In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification inthe presence of two subscribing witnesses.

SELIPHE JOSEPH LAMORA.

Witnesses:

HENRY J. WILLIAMS, NATHAN BENLAYER.

